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The Bush administration has also asked America's neighbor and ally Canada to sign a bilateral agreement granting U.S. citizens accused of war crimes immunity from arrest and prosecution by the ICC. The American proposal was not welcomed by Canadian officials, who termed it "unnecessary." Carl Schwenger, spokesman for Canada's Foreign Affairs Department stated: "We don't share the U.S. concerns. Democratic, law-abiding states have nothing to fear from the ICC, which has rigorous safeguards to protect against any frivolous investigations." =============================== Ottawa Citizen August 8, 2002 Thursday Canada shuns deal to shield U.S. troops U.S. wants others to vow not to send its soldiers to new war crimes court James Baxter Canada has been asked by the United States to sign an agreement that it will not turn over American military personnel to the newly formed International Criminal Court for war-crimes trials, Canadian officials have confirmed. Canada has yet to give an official response, but a Foreign Affairs spokesman said the U.S. request is unnecessary. The move is part of the U.S. government's continuing efforts to insulate its military from the court, from which the Bush administration withdrew in June. Since then the administration has sought bilateral anti-extradition treaties with court members, including Canada, aimed at preventing U.S. soldiers and peacekeepers from being turned over to the court in The Hague. "Canada and other countries have been approached by the U.S. to conclude bilateral agreements regarding the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court," said Carl Schwenger, spokesman for the Foreign Affairs Department. "We don't share the U.S. concerns. Democratic, law-abiding states have nothing to fear from the ICC, which has rigorous safeguards to protect against any frivolous investigations." The court was established in July in order to prosecute individuals for war crimes and genocide when national governments refuse to act. To date, only Israel and Romania have agreed to the U.S. requests and Canadian officials made clear that they believe giving blanket immunity to U.S. military personnel is unnecessary, since the court only has jurisdiction when a country refuses to conduct an investigation into alleged war crimes. But the U.S. remains unconvinced and last week passed the American Servicemembers Protection Act, dubbed sarcastically in international circles as the "Invade the Hague Act." The act, passed by Congress, calls on the U.S. to use "all means necessary" to keep U.S. personnel from being forced to stand trial before the court in the Netherlands. The act's strong wording, taken to its extreme, could sanction a military raid on another country to extricate a U.S. serviceman being threatened with prosecution. Experts in international law said the U.S. reaction is "dramatic overkill" aimed at pandering to right-wing isolationists, who fear U.S. sovereignty is being eroded by international institutions such as the United Nations and World Trade Organization. Mr. Schwenger did not comment on U.S. motives, but agreed the bilateral agreements and the U.S. act are unnecessary. "If the U.S. enforces its own criminal laws against its citizens, the ICC will never take jurisdiction over an American citizen," Mr. Schwenger said. Still, he said Canada doesn't believe the U.S. would unlawfully violate the territorial integrity of another country in order to prevent it from fulfilling its legal obligations to the court. Mr. Schwenger also said Canada intends to continue "efforts to encourage widespread ratification and implementation of the treaty and that it is committed to maintain a dialogue with Washington on any legitimate concerns it may have with respect to the court." __________ --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: archive@jab.org EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.bacIlu Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
